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Geek Vibes Nation
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Geek Vibes Nation
‘The Surrender' (2025) Review – A Slow-Burning Descent Into Familial Dread
The Surrender is a quietly unsettling meditation on grief, memory, and the uncomfortable weight of family ties. At first glance, it may appear to follow a familiar path—mourning characters dabbling in dark rituals to bring back a loved one—but what lies beneath is a study of loss and emotional unraveling that builds slowly, then erupts with eerie, surreal intensity. While it borrows from classic genre frameworks, director Julia Max infuses the story with enough emotional specificity and character-driven tension to make her debut feel intimate and personal. At the center of the film are Megan (Colby Minifie) and Barbara (Kate Burton), a daughter and mother pulled together by the recent death of Robert, the family patriarch. But the real horror here isn't just in the occult; it's in what's left unsaid between these two women. The death is only the catalyst. What unfolds is a slow exposure of deeply rooted resentment, miscommunication, and emotional isolation. Barbara, reeling from the loss of her husband, becomes consumed with the idea of reversing death through mystical means. Megan, more grounded and scientific in her worldview, is torn between disbelief, duty, and her own unresolved relationship with both of her parents. Colby Minifie & Kate Burton in Julia Max's THE SURRENDER. Courtesy of Cailin Yatsko. A Shudder Release. This clash of perspectives—rationality versus belief, control versus surrender—is the emotional core of the film. What works particularly well is how The Surrender never turns Barbara into a villain or Megan into a martyr. Both women are flawed, grieving in ways that conflict with one another, and neither has the tools to bridge the gap between them. It's in these quiet, tense moments—more than the supernatural sequences—that the film becomes genuinely chilling. Julia Max's direction favors a deliberate, almost glacial pace, which may frustrate some viewers. But it's this same pacing that allows grief to linger and fester onscreen, unflinching in its heaviness. The film rarely offers relief. Even in its quieter moments, there's a constant undercurrent of dread—not just about what's happening, but what has already happened. The past is never far from the surface. Through carefully constructed flashbacks and dreamlike memory fragments, we see how Megan has both idealized and misunderstood her father, and how Barbara's identity has become dangerously tethered to her role as a wife. Much of the film's strength lies in its performances. Colby Minifie captures the fraught, restless energy of a daughter trying to stay afloat while drowning in guilt. Kate Burton, meanwhile, gives Barbara a stoic, brittle edge—her desperation to fix what's been broken is palpable, even as it pushes her to terrifying extremes. Their dynamic is never theatrical, but always raw. Every argument, every silence, carries the weight of years of unresolved pain. Colby Minifie, Pete Ploszek, and Alaina Pollack in Julia Max's THE SURRENDER. Courtesy of Cailin Yatsko. A Shudder Release. What's especially compelling is how The Surrender plays with the idea of memory—how it's shaped, distorted, and weaponized. Megan's childhood recollections of her father are warm, but as the film progresses, those moments are complicated by new revelations and haunting symbols. It's not just about grieving who someone was—it's about reconciling who they really were. In this way, the horror becomes internalized, as Megan is forced to confront not just her father's death, but her own complicity in a family dynamic built on silence and sacrifice. The ritual that drives the film's plot is suitably eerie, filled with cryptic instructions and ambiguous consequences. It's a clever metaphor for the psychological hoops we jump through to avoid accepting loss. But while the third act delivers on surreal, skin-crawling imagery, the real impact comes from the emotional fallout. The horror is not just what comes back, but what it reveals. Neil Sandilands and Colby Minifie in Julia Max's THE SURRENDER. Courtesy of Cailin Yatsko. A Shudder Release. Not every idea in The Surrender lands. There are hints of a broader commentary about gender roles, caregiving, and how women often carry the burden of emotional labor in silence. But these themes are more gestured at than deeply explored. Still, even in its ambiguity, there's something deeply resonant about the film's refusal to neatly resolve its characters or its questions. The Surrender may not satisfy viewers looking for jump scares or gore. It's not a film that seeks to startle, but to haunt—to leave you sitting with thoughts about your own family, your own memories, and the things we carry forward from those who raised us. It's slow, somber, and emotionally heavy, but in those qualities lies its power. For those willing to sit with its grief, it offers something rare: a horror film less concerned with what's hiding in the dark, and more interested in what we refuse to face in the light. The Surrender is currently available to stream on Shudder.
Daily Mail
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Scandal star Bellamy Young DEMANDS the show returns as she weighs in on current political climate
Scandal star Bellamy Young is calling for the popular political thriller to return amid the current turbulent political backdrop – and she's even revealed the cast would leap at reprising their characters. The 55-year-old actress famously played Melody 'Mellie' Grant in the series, the no-nonsense powerhouse who started as the First Lady of the United States before running as a Republican presidential candidate and going on to become the first female President of the United States. Speaking exclusively to at the New York Women in Communications Matrix Awards, where she was an honoree, Bellamy proclaimed that she is 'through' with men leading the country. On the red carpet at the Ziegfeld Ballroom, she also revealed that the cast of Scandal have fond memories of the series and would love the opportunity to take the story further. Bellamy said: 'So our sweet Kate Burton was president for like a week when we shot this, but yes, I was the first elected. When is it going to happen [in reality]? I'm so through with this!' She continued: 'We're well past - if you look at the state of the world - we're well overdue for any sort of diversion from our historic path. 'But even being in the care of the women tonight of New York WICI (Women in Communications Inc.) as they plan for this event, we are given to a certain degree of thoughtfulness and attention to detail that I think would be really strategically important in running a thorough formation.' There has never been a female President of the United States, although Kamala Harris fought for the top job as the Democrat nominee in the 2024 Election. Hillary Clinton also ran against Donald Trump in the 2016 Presidential Election. Scandal ran on ABC from 2012 to 2018 across seven seasons. Created by Shonda Rhimes, the political thriller is set Washington, D.C., and focuses on Olivia Pope's (Kerry Washington) crisis management firm and its staff, as well as staff at the White House and surrounding political scene. The cast starred Tony Goldwyn as Fitzgerald Grant III, President of the United States, Darby Stanchfield as Abby Whelan, Katie Lowes as Quinn Perkins, Jeff Perry as Cyrus Beene, Joshua Malina as David Rosen, and Scott Foley as Jake Ballard. When asked whether there have been conversations about Scandal returning to television screens, Bellamy expressed her desire to revisit the show. She added: 'So I wish that that were implemented. All the actors would show up anywhere tonight and start filming. We would love it. 'Shonda has always been clear that she knew where the story started and she knew where the story ended, but never say never. 'She also didn't know where the future was going when she started and finished that story, so who's to say? 'Maybe there's an itch she might be looking to scratch. I can only put it into the ether.' Besides Bellamy, this year's Matrix honorees also included Kristen Welker, Moderator of NBC's Meet the Press; Leslie Berland, EVP, Chief Marketing Officer, Verizon; Nkechi Okoro Carroll, writer, showrunner, producer; and Dustee Jenkins, Chief Public Affairs Officer at Spotify. Teneshia Jackson Warner, Founder and CEO of Egami Group was also honored, as well as Lucy Kaylin, Editorial Director of Hearst Magazines. This year's theme is Leading Luminaries and the honorees are luminaries who are lighting the path of success and influencing the future. Speaking to on the red carpet, Kristen Welker said that it was 'an incredible honor' to be recognized by the New York Women in Communications. 'Several of my colleagues at NBC News have won this award; Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb and the great Andrea Mitchell, who's here tonight presenting me with my award,' she enthused. 'So it's a pinch me moment. I don't know how I'm going to get through my remarks after Andrea speaks. It really is incredibly humbling, so I'm excited.' 'If I could go back and talk to my teenage self, I would say, always believe in yourself,' Kristen, 48, continued. 'People are going to doubt you all along the way, when you're starting, when you're in the middle of your career, even when you get your dream job, and the one thing that gets you through all of those trials and tribulations is to believe in yourself and to surround yourself by a loving group of friends and family and to have a great team. 'It's all about community.' The glitzy event was hosted by none other than media personality, podcaster, and attorney, Rachel Lindsay, who made history as the first Black female lead of The Bachelorette. 'It's one of those events where I feel like the energy in the room is so infectious,' she told 'It's just such an honor to be here, to be standing before people who are just here to support women, not just who are currently doing it, but investing in the people that are going to do it. 'So that's just really cool. I'm just like, I'm just happy to be invited.'
